'Around the World in 90 Minutes' wows attendees with stories of travel and wildlife

Marty Essen, an esteemed
photographer and explorer of all seven continents, gave a presentation on April
12 in Sinclair Auditorium.

Essen published an extremely
interesting novel in 2007 about his experiences called, "Cool Creatures, Hot
Planet."

His website,
coolcreatureshotplanet.com, explains his "Around the World in 90 Minutes"
presentation as a "high-energy show featuring interesting facts, humorous
stories, and the best of the thousands of photos Marty Essen took while
traveling for his multi-award-winning book... One part lecture, one part theater,
one part slide show, and one part comedy—it's the type of show where the
audience has fun laughing at the stories, oohing and aahing at the photos,
and then, when it's all done, they realize just how much they've learned."

Zach CahnMarty Essen, an esteemed photographer and explorer of all seven continents, gave a presentation on April 12 in Sinclair Auditorium.

Essen began his presentation by
explaining how his travels and his love of writing joined together to create an
amazing career path, writing a book about traveling to all seven continents
pursuing the exploration of interesting wildlife.

"The theme of our travels, despite any political hardship,
was always looking for the most interesting wild animals," said Essen.

Interestingly enough, Essen not
only tells stories about his travels, but he accompanies all of his experiences
with fantastic pictures.

His travels, along with his book,
began in Belize, which marked the beginning of a six-time award winning book
and five-year college seminar tour.

"Wow, this is extremely
interesting."said Rachel Kourakas, a sophomore business student.

The business school always strives to bring in extremely knowledgeable resources in business, but hearing about other opportunities like world travel and
exploration from clubs and organizations on campus should not be taken for granted.

"I think Marty has engaged in an extremely
interesting exploration of the world," said Kourakas. "I envy his amazing
experiences."

Between getting bitten by fire ants and
swimming with vicious red-belly piranhas, there was really no stopping Essen on
his dangerous exploration.

"One thing I learned about my travels is to get down and
enjoy the little things," he said. "These little things can be gone in just a
second."

He was fortunate enough to get a picture of an extremely
rare but dangerous frog, the Poison Dart Frog —a frog barely the size of your
fingertip.

"This is fascinating," said Semir Redzepagic, '14. "I
can't believe the pictures Mr. Essen was able to capture in real time. I can
only imagine the amazing type of equipment he was carrying around the world.
You can tell he loves what he is doing. He is so animated with his
presentation."

Semir was right. Mr. Essen is an
extremely skilled photographer with essentially no fear.

"I think the most interesting part
of the presentation is his knowledge of the most amazing species," said Remy
Lieversohn, '12. "As a senior I have been through a lot and I have seen the
most interesting presentations; this was definitely one of the most enjoyable
experiences I have been a part of during my career at Lehigh. I urge students
to attend an assortment of random events to attempt to diversify their
education."

Overall, the presentation was a broad connection of stories, experiences, pictures and humor.

Essen captures the message of his presentation in the following reflection within his book.

"I learned so much while
writing and researching this book that I felt as if I were working on
doctorates in both herpetology and zoology. Thankfully, I was able to skip the
animal dissection courses. Books, direct field observation, and knowledge
passed on by local guides all contributed to my education. Sharing with you the
best of what I've learned give me great pleasure."

This event was hosted by the Global
Union organization. The Global Union organization is a coalition of student
clubs and organization around campus focused on promoting global awareness and
cultural understanding within the Lehigh Community and Lehigh Valley as noted
on their page.